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Italy's Nibali protects lead at Vuelta

AP
10:25 p.m. EDT August 30, 2013

Czech Zdenek Stybar of team Omega Pharma-QuickStep, right, crosses the finish to win as Belgium's Philippe Gilbert , left, takes second position in the seventh stage of the Spanish Vuelta on Friday.(Photo: Miguel Angel Morenatti AP)

Stybar broke away with Philippe Gilbert in the final kilometers of the 206-kilometer (128-mile) stage from Almendralejo to Mairena del Alijarafe and edged the world road race champion at the finish line.

The 27-year-old Stybar won the Eneco Tour this month. His stage win comes one day after Omega Pharma-Quickstep teammate Tony Martin saw his long solo escape come up just short in the final stretch.

"It's a really beautiful day for me and my team after yesterday when Tony was fighting so hard. It was a perfect scenario," Stybar said. "It felt really good. The first stages were really hard for me, but today the win gives me a lot of confidence.

"You don't beat a world champion every day."

Stybar finished with a time of 4 hours, 51 minutes, 27 seconds.

The flat stage didn't cause any changes at the top of the general classification.

Nibali, the Giro d'Italia champion, kept his 3-second lead over American rider Christopher Horner.

The day ended poorly for the Garmin Sharp team when the peloton passed through Seville, with Tyler Farrar stopping because of a flat tire before Daniel Martin was slowed by a fall.

Some cyclists complained that the final stretch was unsafe because the narrow streets brought the spectators too close to the riders.

"The end of the stage was shameful. An urban route where we have the public touching us with their hands? It's an issue of survival," Joaquim Rodriguez said. "We already talked about it in the peloton. This is worth stopping for."

Fellow Spaniard Alejandro Valverde agreed.

"Too dangerous? I think so," he said. "I have spoken with several riders and they all complained. There must have been another alternative that was less dangerous. The final sprint always has its risks, but today was too much."

After two transition stages, the Vuelta returns to the mountains on Saturday with a 167-kilometer (104-mile) ride starting in Jerez de la Frontera and ending in a climb to the category one summit finish at Alto de Penas Blancas.